U.S. Military Bases on Alert as Typhoon Phanfone Heads for Japan

TOKYO — U.S. military bases in Japan were on alert Friday as Typhoon Phanfone headed for the region, threatening torrential rains and gusty winds by late Sunday. The storm system, which is officially known as "18W," was packing maximum sustained winds of 112 mph and was moving northwest across the western Pacific Ocean at about 14 mph, according to an update from the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) at 6 p.m. local time (6 a.m. ET) Friday. Japan’s Meteorological Center said the storm was “pretty strong” and posed a risk of heavy rain.